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DECREE No

DECREE No. 21/2003/ND-CP OF MARCH 10, 2003 PRESCRIBING THE FUNCTIONS, TASKS, POWERS AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE MINISTRY FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government of December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to Resolution No. 02/2002/QH11 of August 5, 2002 of the first session of the XIth National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, stipulating the list of ministries and ministerial-level agencies of the Government;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 86/2002/ND-CP of November 5, 2002 prescribing the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structures of the ministries and the ministerial-level agencies;

At the proposals of the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of the Interior,

DECREES:

Article 1.- Position and functions

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is an agency of the Government, which performs the function of State management over external affairs, including: the diplomatic work, the national border and territory, the communities of overseas Vietnamese, the signing and implementation of international treaties, and Vietnamese representative agencies in foreign countries; the State management over public services and acts as a representative of the owner of the State capital portions at the State-invested enterprises operating in the domains under the Ministry’s State management according to law provisions.

Article 2.- Tasks and powers

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has the responsibility to perform the tasks and exercise the powers, prescribed in the Government’s Decree No. 86/2002/ND-CP of November 5, 2002 stipulating functions, tasks, powers and organizational structures of the ministries and ministerial-level agencies, and the following specific tasks and powers:

1. To submit to the Government and the Prime Minister bills, draft ordinances and legal documents in the domains under its State management;

2. To submit to the Government and the Prime Minister Development strategies and planning, long-term, five-year and annual plans in the domains under its State management;

3. To promulgate decisions, directives and circulars under its State management scope;

4. To direct, guide, inspect and take responsibility for the implementation of legal documents, strategies, planning and plans already approved as well as other legal documents under its management scope; to propagate, disseminate and educate in legislation and information in the domains under its State management.

5. Regarding diplomatic work:

a) To submit to the Government and the Prime Minister schemes on the establishment or suspension of diplomatic or consular relationships with other countries and international inter-governmental organizations; the establishment and withdrawal of Vietnamese representative agencies in foreign countries; the appointment and recall of extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassadors and heads of the permanent Vietnamese representative missions to the United Nations;

b) To represent the State in diplomatic relations with other countries and international organizations; to carry out the State’s external activities;

c) To dispose the approval of diplomatic representations of other countries and international organizations in Vietnam. To manage the operation of foreign diplomatic missions and consulates, including honorary consulates, representative agencies of international organizations in the United Nations system and Vietnam-based international inter-governmental organizations in compliance with Vietnamese and international laws;

d) To assume the prime responsibility in making preparations for high-level delegations of the State to visit other countries or attend international conferences and in receiving high-level delegations of other countries and international organizations visiting Vietnam within the domains managed by the Ministry according to the Government’s stipulations;

e) To organize and participate in international conferences and seminars on the domains managed by the Ministry;

f) To voice Vietnam’s official points of view and stance on international issues; to organize international press conferences and prepare contents for the Party and State high-ranking leaders to answer foreign correspondents in regular interviews or irregular interviews at their requests;

g) To assume the prime responsibility in monitoring and synthesizing foreign press opinions related to Vietnam; to monitor and deploy external information activities in foreign countries;

h) To manage and grant permits for press activities of foreign correspondents in Vietnam; to manage and settle press and information activities of foreign delegations visiting Vietnam at the invitation of leaders of the State, the Government and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs;

i) To take the main charge over the operation of the National Committee for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO);

j) To protect the interests of the State, the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese organizations and citizens in foreign countries according to Vietnamese and international laws;

k) To perform tasks concerning consular work, entry and exit of Vietnamese citizens and foreigners according to the Government’s assignment; to perform the tasks regarding legitimization, consular certification, nationality and civil status; to protect Vietnamese citizens in foreign countries according to law provisions.

6. Regarding national border and territory:

a) To study, synthesize and evaluate the situation on management of national border and territory, air space, sea areas, offshore islands and continental shelf of Vietnam; to propose suitable undertakings, policies and appropriate measures for the management thereof;

b) To assist the Government in determining national border and sovereignty scope and rights of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the mainland, seas, air space, offshore islands and continental shelf;

c) To assume the prime responsibility in formulating plans on demarcation of national border; to determine the boundaries of the Vietnamese exclusive economic zones and continental shelf with concerned neighboring countries.;

d) To direct, guide and organize the implementation of, and request concerned branches and localities to regularly or irregularly report on, border management; to demarcate and fix national border marker-posts on the basis of international treaties on demarcation of national border, signed between the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and neighboring countries;

e) To submit to the Prime Minister for handling, or to provide guidance according to its competence for the handling of issues which have arisen in the operation of branches and localities are related to the sovereignty and rights of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on the mainland, seas, air space, offshore islands and continental shelf.

7. Regarding overseas Vietnamese’ communities:

a) To study, synthesize and propose to the Government and competent agencies undertakings and policies towards overseas Vietnamese;

b) To assume the prime responsibility, coordinate with and guide the ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies attached to the Government and local administrations in disseminating, propagating, mobilizing and materializing policies towards overseas Vietnamese and their relatives;

c) To support and guide overseas Vietnamese in maintaining their contacts with, and making contributions to, the construction of the country;

d) To manage the organization and operation of the Fund for support and mobilization of overseas Vietnamese communities.

8. Regarding the management of Vietnamese representative agencies in foreign countries:

a) To direct and inspect the realization of the State’s external undertakings and policies as well as the performance of functions and tasks by representative agencies and their staffs;

b) To direct the coordination between representative agencies and concerned agencies at home;

c) To appoint officials and employees of representative agencies according to the Government’s stipulations;

d) To assume the prime responsibility in performing the State management over the representative agencies’ activities in service of the economy;

e) To direct the formulation and management of material and technical foundation as well as funding of representative agencies.

9. Regarding the singing and implementation of international treaties and agreements:

a) To submit to the Government the negotiation, signing of, or accession to, international treaties under the Ministry’s management;

b) To organize the negotiations with other countries and international organizations; to sign or accede to international treaties under the Government’s authorization;

c) To guide, urge, inspect and coordinate in organizing the implementation of international treaties which Vietnam has acceded to;

d) To organize the copying, archival, copyright deposit and State statistics of international treaties which Vietnam has signed or acceded to;

e) To guide, urge and inspect the signing and implementation of international agreements by provinces, centrally-run cities, socio-political organizations, social organizations and/or socio-professional organizations of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;

To guide the archival and copying of international agreements; to direct the making of statistics of these international agreements;

10. To guide the ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies attached to the Government and local People’s Committees in materializing undertakings, policies and law provisions related to the State’s external activities and professional operation concerning external activities;

11. To organize scientific research on international relations; to study, make final reviews, compile and publish publications on Vietnamese diplomacy as well as scientific research projects in the domains under the Ministry’s State management;

12. To decide on specific strategies and measures and direct the implementation of mechanisms for the operation of public-service organizations under the Ministry’s management according to law provisions; to manage and direct the operation of non-business organizations under the Ministry;

13. To perform specific tasks and powers within the right of acting as representative of the owner of the State capital portions at enterprises with State capital under the Ministry’s management according to law provisions;

14. To perform the State management over operation of foreign associations and non-governmental organizations in the domains under the Ministry’s State management according to law provisions;

15. To examine, inspect and settle complaints and denunciations, to fight corruption and negative acts and handle law violations in the domains under the Ministry’s State management competence;

16. To decide and direct the implementation of the Ministry’s administrative reform programs according to the objectives and contents of the State’s administrative reform program approved by the Prime Minister;

17. To manage the organizational apparatus and payroll; to direct the implementation of regimes of wage and diplomatic rank conferment as well as other regimes and policies on preferential treatment, commendation, reward and discipline towards State officials and employees under the Ministry’s management; to provide professional training and fostering to officials and employees in the diplomatic sector;

18. To manage assigned financial sources and assets and organize the execution of allocated budget according to law provisions.

Article 3.- Organizational structure of the Ministry

a) Organizations assisting the Minister in performing the State management functions:

1. The Department for External Policies;

2. The Department for Economic Affairs;

3. The Department for Multilateral Economic Cooperation;

4. The Department for Asia I;

5. The Department for Asia II;

6. The Department for Europe I;

7. The Department for Europe II;

8. The Department for America;

9. The Department for West Asia-Africa;

10. The Department for ASEAN;

11. The Department for International Laws and Treaties;

12. The Department for International Organizations;

13. The Protocol Department;

14. The Department for Culture-UNESCO;

15. The Information and Press Department;

16. The Department for Organization and Personnel;

17. The Department for Administration and Accountancy;

18. The Department for Consular Affairs;

19. The Ministry’s Inspectorate;

20. The Ministry’s Office;

21. The Committee for Overseas Vietnamese;

22. The Committee for Frontier Issues;

23. The Diplomatic Service of Ho Chi Minh City.

b) Non-business organizations under the Ministry:

1. The Institute of International Relations;

2. "Quoc Te" newspaper;

3. The Foreign Press Service Center;

4. The Center for External Economic Information and Informatics;

5. Diplomatic Corps Service Department.

c) The Vietnamese representative agencies in foreign countries under the uniform management of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs include:

1. Embassies;

2. General Consulates and Consulates;

3. Permanent representative missions in foreign countries and to the United Nations and international inter-governmental organizations.

Article 4.- Implementation effect

This Decree takes effect 15 days after it is published on the Official Gazette.

This Decree replaces the Government’s Decree No. 82/CP of November 10, 1993 stipulating the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Decree No. 37/CP of April 26, 1997 on the functions, tasks, powers and organizational apparatus of the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese under the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Decree No. 21/CP of May 8, 1993 on the functions, tasks, powers and organizational apparatus of the Government Committee for Frontier Issues.

Article 5.- Implementation responsibility

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall have to implement this Decree.

On behalf of the Government

Prime Minister
PHAN VAN KHAI